How to Express Agreement & Disagreement in English

By Christine Bartsch

Woman and man having conversation outside.

Whether during a pleasant chat or a heated debate, opportunities arise in conversation for participants to express agreement or disagreement. Between sarcasm, slang and double negatives, finding the appropriate agreement and disagreement expressions is tricky for English language learners at any age. While “yes,” “no,” “I agree” and “I disagree,” are polite and acceptable responses, they are not the only affirmative or negative expressions available and may not be the logical responses in a given situation.

Agreement Expressions

A simple “yes” appropriately expresses agreement in many situations, but it’s not always the appropriate response. When someone says, “I really enjoyed that dinner,” responses such as “Me too” and “So did I,” confirm a shared opinion. Other affirmative statements express a full and strong agreement. For example, saying “exactly,” “absolutely” or “I couldn’t agree more,” in response to an opinion expresses total agreement. Occasionally, “I know” is used to indicate a shared opinion. For instance, if someone says, “That waiter is so rude,” responding with “I know” indicates your agreement with the statement.

Disagreement Phrases

Saying “no” or “I disagree” may be the quickest way to express disagreement, but it’s not always the most polite. Certain phrases, such as “I see your point, but … ,” “That’s partly true, however … ” and “Maybe, but ... ,” are designed to soften disagreements by first validating the original speaker’s statement before stating your differing opinion. For example, if a co-worker says, “She should be fired because she’s always late to work,” a reply of “I see your point, but she does stay late, too,” indicates your disagreement with the opinion that she should be fired.

References

About the Author

A former art instructor, high school counselor and party planner, Christine Bartsch writes fashion, travel, interior design, education and entertainment content. Bartsch earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in communications/psychology/fine arts from Wisconsin Lutheran College and a creative writing Master of Fine Arts from Spalding University. She's written scripts for film/television productions and worked as the senior writer at a video game company.